Pacific Business Review International

Volume 5 Issue 11 (May 2013) 108

Cause Related Marketing: A Path Maker to

Doing Socially Responsible Business
Raghvendra Singh Sisodia*, Rahul Vyas**, Dr.Snheal Maheshkar***
According the United Nations and the European Commission, Corporate Social Responsibility leads to' triple
bottom line'- profits, Planet and People. This article tries to focus on the difference between CSR and CRM and
to understand how companies use the concept of CRM as a marketing strategy. A Number of Corporations are
incorporating CSR as the prime policy of their business. AS CSR identifies the core area of operating business
while simultaneously implementing some socially relevant policies and principles that achieve these triple
bottom benefits. In India many companies have been successfully practising CSR activities for decades and
helping towards issues like child labour, child education, energy efficiency, water pollution, Women
empowerment.etc. This article is written on the secondary data basis.
Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility, Cause Related Marketing, Child Education, Social Issues.

Cause Related Marketing: Prologue
“Business in partnership with charities and causes can play a
vital role in the regeneration of communities.”
The Prince of Wales II
Cause Related Marketing is “A Commercial activity by which
business and charities or cause form a partnership with each
other to market an image, product or service for mutual
benefit”(Business in the Community,2004). Cause related
marketing is a part of corporate social responsibility as this is
the most asked question that, Is CSR is a marketing or not? The
answer might be hidden in the concept of CRM (Cause related
marketing). Cause related marketing is the one the way to
communicate the audience about the causes. Cause related
marketing as a part of organizations CSR activities, It is a type
of program in which an organization committed to donate an
amount that depends on the sales they achieved in certain
period time for a cause (kotler and Lee 2006) The main
objective of the cause related marketing is to increase the
corporate image, leveraging the brand equity and earning the
market profit.
'The objective of the Business in the Community Campaign is
to generate awareness and understanding of Cause Related
Marketing promoting a greater quality, extent and excellence
of programmes... In the first four years (of the campaign) the
focus has been on defining and scoping Cause Related
Marketing and beginning to establish Cause Related
Marketing as a legitimate pan of the marketing, corporate
affairs, community affairs and corporate fundraising mix'. (Sir
Dominic Cadbury, 1999)
The evidence shows that CRM is an effective way to
*Raghvendra Singh Sisodia, Assistant Professor, Pacific Business School Udaipur
**Rahul Vyas, Assistant Professor, Pacific Business School Udaipur
***Dr.Snheal Maheshkar Director, Vision School of Management, Chittorgarh
communicate the mass audience where common man itself
feels included to help in particular cause.
Differentiate between CSR and CRM
Corporate social responsibility is the hot term now a day each
and every organization is doing something responsible in the
society. It is the one of the mandatory way as per the law to
show how the organizations are engaging their social
responsibility through their value delivery system corporate
social responsibility or corporate citizenship works towards the
triple bottom line such as people, planet and profit. CSR
means giving back something not the same thing. It begging by
the socially investment for the society it operates.
On the other side of the coin “CRM is defined as the process of
formulating and implementing marketing activities that are
characterized by contributing a specific about to a designated
non-profit efforts that in turn, causes customers to engage in
revenue-providing exchanges”(Mullen,1997). Cause related
marketing is the tool to communicate the marketing efforts of
the organization attached with some on doing social cause. It is
the combination of both marketing and CSR. CRM (Cause
Related Marketing) advocates the long term partnership
between the corporation and community. The primary goal of
CRM is too associated with specific cause related or social
campaign ads to contribute the real beneficiaries by donating
into the charities while promoting the product towards the
consumer. CRM is strong association between the non-profit
organizations and the profit organization for the specific
'Cause fit'.

Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2727636

109
A BIG QUESTION: Why Cause Related Marketing
Cause Related marketing is the hot term for the most of the
organizations as it has lot of the benefits for Society,
Organization and off-course for the Cause itself..
CRM is a partnership between a profit generating organization
and non-profit organization .In which one party is experienced
and one use the name and logo of the organization for the sack
of good causes. Various practicenaires raised the question that
does CRM works; According to Ropher Strach polls in year
1998 for Boston based cone communication say's that four out
of five respondents thought that there should be definitely a
marketing agreement for profit and non-profit organization to
do cause related marketing is good for their business.
Following are the benefits of CRM as follows:
1. Triple Win Concept
Society
NGO Organization
CRM is always tries to do better for the society as well as for
cause with some sort of profit earnings. Number of the social
issues are raised by the Non-profit organizations but to support
them very less profit organization is working for and hereby
once an organization is associated with some cause related
program to support the financially support the NGO or to
particular Cause.
2. Consumer partnership
Cause related marketing directly or indirectly invites
their buyers to participate in the cause. As this is the
strategy implies to consumers that once they buy the
product of the company which is engaged in the cause
related program like child education, P&G –Shiksha,
HZL-Midday meal etc; Consumer will more
voluntary come to support the particular cause and
buy the company's product or services
3. Attracting new customers
Cause Related Marketing is one of the way to retain
the existing customer and attract the new customers
for purchasing of their product and services. Once it
is clearly understand by the company about which
cause they are focusing and motivated their customers
to participate in particular cause; this short term
Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2727636
Pacific Business Review International
strategy have the impact to retain customers for long
lasting.
4. Increasing sales of products or services;
Cause Related Marketing emphasizes over the
stakeholders of the company either supplier or
employees, it drives a positive values and helpful in
increasing of sales. As customer himself feel associated
with the “for said cause” and contribute his/her share
for the cause. In this way most of the organization
enjoys the high sale during the short span of time.
5. Creating a positive image of a brand –
As per the studies it is found that Cause related
marketing is helpful to increase the organizations
Brand images. It is the creative way to make aware
about the particular cause by which organization or
Its Product are enggaged.It helps positive impact over
the customer in the purchase process decision as
Cause Related Marketing provides a platform to
generate the awareness about the specific cause to its
customer.
6. CRM Raise funds for a social cause (Kotler &
Lee,2005)
CRM is helpful to generate the funds for its social
programs as in the early years of CRM it is first
introduced by the American Express "cause-related
marketing" in 1983 to describe its campaign to raise
money for the Statue of Liberty's restoration.
American Express donated one cent to the restoration
every time someone used its charge card. As a result,
the number of new cardholders grew by 45 percent,
and card usage increased by 28 percent
CRM & MARKETING STRETAGY
CRM & Advertising: Advertising is that which creates
attention towards the consumers and CRM is just that
“Attention” means a special cause over consumer have to
rethink befor their purchase. A very good ad campaign by the
TATA TEA “Jaago Re! Desh So Raha hai...”By this social
cause Tata Tea advertises its product while highlighted the
social cause of Voting Rights. One more eye opening
advertisement by the TATA TEA is of about the “Corruption”
“Ab Khillana Bannd or Pilana Shru” emphasizes on the social
cause like corruption, Adviertesmet by IDEA Cellular focusing
for Some of the Social Cause as child education, Voting Rights,
Recycling and Walk While Talk... and differentiated itself
among from the other telecommunication service providers.
CRM & Donation:
Cause Related Marketing is one of the best tools to for the fore
said 'Cause' itself. By the help of CRM number of the
companies are engaged in generating fund for the social issues;
one of the recent example of 'Satyamave Jayate' where the show
Volume 5 Issue 11 (May 2013)
is highlighted the social issues and the Reliance Foundation
supports the program wherein whatever the donation amount
is received by the public is matched with the Reliance
foundation and donated to the NGO for particular cause.
CRM requests from its customers for donating fort the sack of
humanitarians. It is again beneficial for the organization is that
whatever donation or gift is given by the company is not
considered as tax deductible
CRM & Publicity
Cause Related Marketing is an eye opener to its local
community about the cause company is working. Here
company gets a positive chance to deliver a message of its
product or services. As Publicity is one which is uncontrollable
in nature as once the positive image of organization generates it
remains long-lasting. Publicity depends on the credibility of
the company that what promise had been done by the
company to its community and Cause Related Marketing is
the way to show that company is working for their promise.
For an example Hindustan Zinc Limited is one of the leading
Zinc Manufacturer Company working with various cause to
remain in the mind of customers such as, Mid-Day Meal,
Women Empowerment and Child Education. Thus the
credibility of HZL is so high that word of mouth publicity is
enough and no more marketing promotion activities are
required
CRM & Common man
Cause Related Marketing is the strategy to generate mass
awareness about the cause and promotes the brand while
eliminating the cause by the initiative of for-profit organizations.
One of the best example of involvement of common man in the
cause related programme is Aishwarya Rai's Eye Donation
Campaign appealing and creating general awareness about the
problem of blindness and invite the common man to donate their
eye after the death
CRM in Indian Context
• Voltas
One of the most renowned company which is known
for it AC's is engaged with one of the ideological cause
known as “Jaggamag desh hai mere” to serve its
product by an energy efficient concept. With initial
campaign of energy saving voltas, emphasizes its
customers to purchase the Voltas AC's to participate
in the campaign
• Avon brand,
This Brand positioned itself by recruiting, training
and motivating sales force, and created a strong CRM
campaign to fight against breast cancer.
• P & G : Pampers
As in 'One act can Save life' by Matthew Price, P&
110
G's Pamper the social partnership between
UNICEF (United Nations Children Fund) for their
long term goal to eliminating the maternal and
newborn tetanus (MNT), an infection that occurs in
unsanitary birth conditions in some of the most
deprived areas of the world. 1 Pamper = 1
Vaccination campaign makes saves 100 millions of
babies and their mothers lives. Thus all three,
Pampers, UNICEF and cause wins.
• P & G : Shiksha
In the series of doing good for the community P& G
had done a lot as its one of the most promising
campaign of Shiksha along with the collaboration of
CRY to promote the child education. P & G
promises and invites their buyers to purchase large
number of quantities of any of the P&G's product
and help to educate the little ones by their
participation as P&G beside the irrespective sale
donate one Corer rupees to CRY for child
education.
TATA SALT: DESH KA NAMAK
One of the Multi Brand TATA known for its TATA
SALT camping as in it directly emphasizes that TATA
NAMAK – DESH KO ARPAN, DESH KA
NAMAK with the effective cause of Iodinized
problem, as 10 paisa of every KG of TATA SALT,
spent for the under nourished child ,child education
programme with partnership of CRY(Child Relief &
You).
Conclusion
It is clear that Cause Related Marketing has come a long way
since the days of charity and general philanthropy. Today it is a
global phenomenon which has developed into the new way for
business and non profit causes to joint venture to achieve
mutual benefits. It supports a cause with the power of the
corporate brand, marketing, and people to achieve social and
shareholder value while communicating values. Thus,
corporate social responsibility and cause related marketing
have become the important for all companies to design their
marketing communication Strategy and ,they have emerged as
tool for effecting public perception which eventually leads to
building strong brand image and enhancing customer loyalty.
References:
Varadarajan, P. R., & Menon, A. (1988). Cause-related
marketing: A coalignment of marketing strategy and
corporate philanthropy. Journal of Marketing 52 (3),
58-73.
Sundar, S. (2007). Cause Related Marketng: Tactic of Strategy.
International Marketing Confrences on Marketing &
Society, IIMK
111 Pacific Business Review International

Barnes, N., & Fitzgibbons, D. (1991). Is cause related

marketing is your future?. Business Forum, 16(4), pp.
20-24
American Express Launches National Campaign to Re-open
the Statute of Liberty. (2003). American Express
Current News Release.
Good deeds attract customers and workes. (1999). USA Today,
Vol 128, No 2651, p.15-16.
Execs view cause marketing as a way to build
relationships.(1996). Marketing News, v. 30, p. 18.